Barcelona Transfer News: Latest Rumours Following Neymar's Exit Demand

Neymar's shock exit demand from Barcelona has sent the transfer rumour mill into overdrive, with the likes of Antoine Griezmann, Philippe Coutinho, Paulo Dybala and Ousmane Dembele all highlighted as potential replacements.

The Catalans confirmed Neymar's desire to leave the club on Wednesday, putting out a statement on their official website. In that press release, they said the Brazilian won't leave the club for less than his €222 million buyout clause, a dizzying sum that would open up a wealth of possibilities for the Blaugrana.

Sam McGuire of Football Whispers (for Sky Sports) summed up a number of rumours floated almost immediately. Per AS, Atletico Madrid forward Griezmann is the team's preferred option to replace Neymar, despite the Frenchman's public pledge to Los Rojiblancos earlier this summer.

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Griezmann's situation is complicated. As explained by Lluis Miguelsanz of Sport, his buyout clause this summer sits at €200 million and will drop back to €100 million―the original fee before he signed his new deal―next summer.

The bigger sum all but guarantees he won't leave the Spanish capital this summer while Los Rojiblancos deal with their transfer ban. Per the report, Barcelona have already asked Atletico to lower their asking price, but to no avail.

Coutinho would be another option, and per Marca, Barcelona will consider making a third offer for the Brazilian, with Liverpool turning down the previous two.

Of the group of players linked with the Catalan giants, no name has come up as often as Coutinho's over the last two years. Sky Sports' Tim Vickery sees him as an excellent replacement for Neymar, via Sky Sports PL:

But unlike Griezmann, the 25-year-old's contract does not contain a buyout clause. Liverpool have prepared for the Premier League season under the assumption Coutinho will play for them this season―convincing the Reds to sell could be tricky.

The same holds true for Juventus, who rely heavily on Dybala's creativity in their 4-2-3-1 system. The Argentinian plays in a central role for the Bianconeri and isn't a perfect fit for Barcelona's formation, but he would love to team up with Lionel Messi, per Marca.

And then there's Dembele, the youngest member of the group and likely the most affordable. The 20-year-old only moved to Germany last year, and so far he's yet to give any indication he's interested in leaving.

In fact, his latest comments suggest the exact opposite, per Bundesliga.com (h/t Bleacher Report Football):

But a €222 million war chest would give Barcelona an enormous advantage. While clubs will try to milk the Catalans, they can use that mountain of cash to tempt both teams and individual players with huge salaries.

Time will be a key factor―the closer we get to the end of the transfer window, the less keen clubs will be on parting with their stars, knowing there's little time to come up with an alternative.